Hospice

Hospice is the critically acclaimed third studio album by American indie rock group The Antlers, and their first concept album. It was initially self-distributed by the band in March 2009, and was eventually remastered and re-released once they signed to Frenchkiss Records in August. Vocalist Peter Silberman wrote the album after over 2 years of social isolation in Brooklyn, New York.

The album tells an explicit story (in first and second person narrative) of a man meeting a depressed and abusive bone cancer patient in the Sloan Kettering Cancer Ward where he is working, falling in love, and eventually watching her die while he is beside her. Memories, regret and grief recur throughout the album.

The album has generated very positive reviews. Pitchfork Media endorsed the re-release of Hospice with their coveted “Best New Music” stamp. At the end of the year, the same publication named it the 37th best album of 2009, praising its “power to emotionally destroy listeners.” Fan review sites like Rate Your Music and Amazon MP3 have placed the album in its list of Top 10 Albums of 2009. Popular music blog 20 Watts gave it a rating of 18/20 Watts and praised the album’s “realism and its sadness, found in its most abrasive lyrics and most expressive instrumental segments.” NPR Music placed the album in the #1 position for their Top 10 of 2009 list. onethirtybpm named it the best album of 2009.